From Condensation:The story centers around Keito Aoyama, a former famous child actor. Due to a childhood incident, she retired from her career early and withdrew from normal society. Now 16, she passes her days in boredom and without purpose. But one day she runs into a stranger who takes her to El Liston--a free school for high school students like herself, who don't have a place where they belong. Though hesitant at first, Keito decides to enter El Liston and subsequently, she begins a new stage in her life. With the help of her only remaining childhood friend, Taiyou, and her new classmates Rei, Momiji, and Kouichi, Keito slowly finds the courage to open up to others and to accept their support. Will Keito return to acting? Will she find true friends? Love?

A great read with plenty of character development. You get drawn into their plight and their own deals with society. That everybody has their own talents and their own problems, wanting to be shut away from everybody else. But loneliness sinks in and just having friends with somebody to talk to makes a big difference in someone's life.

Love the romance parts too and the naivety it brings. The relationships keep you guessing until the end.

something must be wrong with me. i've read this manga because a lot - i mean A LOT of people have been recommending this but when i actually read it, i feel that there's something missing. it didn't move me. even though there is character development, i don't think that she's all that great. i mean, she's too melancholic for my taste even after the end and even after she started smiling and laughing in the story. i like her lolita friend - she's my fave character. how i wish she was the heroine. hahaha. this manga didn't leave me feeling overwhelmed. it didn't make me want for more. anyways, i'll just read it once more. maybe then i'll change my opinion.

I was going to write a really long review on all the different aspects of this manga and how amazingly well each person was characterized within and how it moved me so deeply that I did honestly scream, cry, and cheer for characters along their journeys...

... but after trying so hard to properly describe this manga and how it so perfectly wove a story I am willing to bet money cannot and never will be matched, all I can say is: why the hell are you still reading this review? Read this manga. Now. You don't need to care about the shoujo genre one way or another. As I personally hate shoujo, I can vouch that that doesn't matter. Out of the genres, I'd say this manga most fits shoujo, but that is only because it doesn't quite fit any of the other genres either. Finally, I can read a manga in which the main female lead is never almost-raped by a gang of thugs--or anyone for that matter--and there are no unrealistic hero rescues to accompany that plot device which has to be the most overused and unrealistic in manga history. The rescues that happen in this manga are much more subtle and ultimately rely on the decisions and strength of the characters facing the trouble themselves. The only thing stray cats can do for one another after all is try to save while being saved.

As a result, I think the strongest point of this manga is that even in its psychologically darkest moments (which are pretty damn dark if I may say so), it gives the reader hope to do something positive themselves. The world may be a harsh place to live in, but the brightest lights shine in the darkest places.

I was introduced to this manga by site. Since it was already completed, I decided to give it a try. I end up reading the entire series in one day. I absolutely love this manga and would recommended to all. The main character girl in this story isn't a crybaby, which was a plus to me. Basically, a girl with this huge problem of being society-withdrawn due to something happened to her childhood and how she was able to get back to her feet. For some people, they might get frustrated with her, but I can feel I can relate to her. Who here haven't felt the time that they want to be shut in from the society after something happened to them? Like for an example, "I embarrassed myself in front of the whole school. I don't wanna go back to school ever again!" In this case, this deals with something more extreme version of this.

She stumbles many problems and learn how to overcome the obstacles. What I love about this story was that it wasn't so dramatized that I was going to throw the manga out my window. Which mean no back-and-forth decision with which guy she'll end up with and no non-realistic situations.

I also love how she can go back to being positive after being so negative for so many years. Lastly, what made this manga attracted me was the idea that kids can go to the school on their free will. Lol, I wish we can have school like that. XD

I don't know how I stumbled upon this manga. I try to stick to really fluffy stuff, things that satisfy my less-than-secretive need for wish-fulfillment. But Cat Street is hands down the best I've read so far. It was surprisingly complex and entirely unpredictable. The main character seems to be a typical shoujo character, constantly relying on others, tearin' up all the time, falling in love at every pin-drop, but in the end, each of the characters has something very unique and special to provide to the story. And some things are left untied at the end, too, but not in a way that's unsatisfying. The narrative ends as a good tale should - with the manga's world living on, beyond the last page.

It was a nice series. Nothing too fanciful or melodramatic. The drama is lighthearted, the romances don't end up being too corny like other shoujo series, and in the end it evokes a melancholic feeling, urging people to stop blaming things and take control of their life. You'll have to fight for your own happiness, and keep your friends close.

I loved reading this manga. It had a good pace and kept me extremely interested. Also, I loved every one of the four main characters! The manga had great character development. You're able to witness how each of the four main characters grow into a stronger person and role.It's been a while since I had a good shoujo read and this definitely was satisfying.

I'm a very picky about shoujo manga but..I have to say it's been AGES since I read a good shoujo manga. The story was wonderful, had everything I wanted. delt with the hardships, I NEVER seen it in shoujo manga this well crafted before. very touching, shows that even strays can be reborn again. a very bitter-sweet-sweet story. I truly enjoyed this manga(I just noticed this is the same mangaka who made hana yori dango-I hated the manga- but this one was expetionally good)I really reccomened this story to people interested in reading a shoujo manga with a decent plotThe main characters especially keito's personality, I've got to say is quite original, I never seen her type of personality in shoujo manga even if I did never this well crafted.It is a lovely story, I haven't read such a nice shoujo manga in a long time. give it a try

i'm glad that i read this manga. for me, the story is brilliant. Keito may start as a bit of a weakling but i think in the end she became stronger. i was quite surprise with whom she end up with but in the end i was quite happy with it. the story progress was a tad slow however, i think that it's the best that way. oh and the art is excellent as well.

overall, i highly recommend this manga. this is one of those that you don't want to miss.

The pace of the story was a bit slow at the beginning, the main character's initial attitudes were hard to be likeable, but somehow I think readers can get it and understand that we all have those kind of attitudes sometimes. I'm glad that the story evolved nicely after that, nothing too 'sweet', it's more like we are faced with bad or even worst moments of life, but then those heroes and heroines are still willing to pay the price and go on. We know that light is bright because there is darkness...

Well, I like the story in general and somehow the idea of having a school for people who lost their paths was kinda sticking in my mind. I guess the author was sucessful in making one of the readers aware of the need for such facilities in this rather stressful and demanding society. Though Although at the beginning I was actually expecting more stories about the main character's professional life after leaving the school, I found the present proportion between lost-love-friendships-emotions-relationships-education(/helping hand) messages was perfect.

Some more sides stories or occational different angles of narration might make better comics next time. Other than that, I really like the drawing style. The lines are so neat, the compositions are very nice, everything was on its place.